Journeys›Photograph

Spring Trip to the Castles of Oberbayern

·Schwangau, Germany·#spring#bavaria#hohenschwangau#neuschwanstein#family-travel#germany
A large yellow castle with red roofs on a rocky, tree-covered hill under a bright blue sky.

Our spring trip to the castles of Oberbayern landed us in Schwangau on a clear day, the yellow bulk of Hohenschwangau sitting on its rock above us as we came up the path. We walked in under the gate arch, the two painted knights and the Bavarian coat of arms over our heads, and out the other side.

Below the castle is the Alpsee, a small deep lake — just under five kilometres of shoreline, sixty-two metres down at its deepest — and we walked a stretch of it with the girls, snow still on the peaks behind the water. From the trail you can look across the valley and see Neuschwanstein white against the mountainside, the tall tower first, then the rest of it coming clear through the bare trees.

Later we drove on to another lake, this one turquoise and rimmed with gravel, ice still floating in a sheet at the far end. The girls picked their way along the stones near the water. Nobody was in a hurry to leave.

Two adults and two children stand smiling in front of a calm lake with mountains and trees under a blue sky.A light yellow castle entrance with a tall tower, decorated archway, and four people standing in sunlight.Two castles, one white and one red, stand by a blue lake surrounded by forests and snow-capped mountains.A wide landscape view of a lake surrounded by forested mountains, with snow-capped peaks under a blue sky.A large, ornate white castle stands against a backdrop of steep, tree-covered mountains under a bright blue sky.A prominent white castle with multiple spires stands on a forested hill, backed by mountains under a clear blue sky.Two adults and two children stand on a rocky shore in front of a blue lake surrounded by forested mountains under a cloudy sky.A woman in a pink jacket stands on a rocky shore next to a turquoise lake with snow-capped mountains in the background.

More Entries